Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Matthew has always lived in Safe, a community hidden far beneath the pipes and tunnels of the city Above. The residents fled to Safe years before to escape the Whitecoats and their cruel experiments, and now Matthew is responsible for both the keeping of Safe’s stories and for Ariel—a golden-haired shapeshifter, and the most beautiful girl he’s ever seen.

But one horrifying night, an old enemy murders Safe’s founder, Atticus, and the community is taken over by an army of shadows. Only Matthew, Ariel, and a handful of friends escape Above. Now they not only have to survive in a sunlit world they barely know, but they must unravel the mystery of the shadows’ fury and Atticus’s death. It’s up to Matthew to find a way to remake Safe—not just for himself and his family, but for Ariel, who’s again faced with the life she fled, and who needs him more than ever before.

Thoughts:
Above is a tale told from the point of view of Matthew who was born in an underground sanctuary called Safe. Residents of Safe are primarily people with some sort of mutation and are known as Freaks or Beasts by the people of Above. And Matthew who was born from a mother who had gills and a father who had lion's feet have the ability to tell stories. Thus he is known as the Teller.
The story would have been wonderful with the collection of colourful different characters (except for Ariel) but the disjointed writing ultimately threw me off. It is reminiscent of Moira Young's style in Blood Red Road which is borderline unique and confusing. In Blood Red Road the plotline is intense enough to keep me going, unfortunately for Above it is not. After fleeing from Safe, all Matthew/Teller does is to keep Ariel out of trouble and at the same time coming up with a plan to return to Safe. Ultimately, I think this is just not for me. I did finish the book though.